Meet The Team

Paul O’Rourke

CEO

Paul O’Rourke joined Emily’s Voice in 2011 after nine years as CEO of child sponsorship and advocacy organisation, Compassion Australia. Before joining Compassion, he worked for 16 years in print journalism, including as Editor-in- chief of Quest Newspapers in Brisbane, and later The Newcastle Herald. Paul has a Master’s Degree in child development and has completed theological studies through C3 Church. He has authored five books, including three related to children; Blessings of the Poor, Mr Compassion and Why Satan Hates our Kids. He is married and has three children and four grandchildren.

Lara Brooks

Supporter Care Coordinator

Lara is the invaluable team member who looks after Emily’s Voice supporters, helps organise events and carries out administrational duties behind the scenes. She came to Emily’s Voice in 2017, having worked in admin, customer service and supervisory roles previously, and having completed a Bachelor of Arts with majors in sociology and communication. She hails from Canada, but has lived in Australia for more than 30 years, and calls Toowoomba home. Lara has three children and is passionate about empowering women and mothers, especially single mothers.

Jeanette Harris

Marketing Manager

Jeanette is a highly accomplished marketer with more than 23 years experience. Having worked across three continents for blue-chip corporates such as Nestlé, Homebase, and FOXTEL, and a variety of categories (food, retail and entertainment), she also started and ran a successful strategic marketing consultancy in Sydney for several years. She has managed teams of people locally and remotely to create the very best brands and campaigns for those entrusted to her. Since moving to Australia, she is enjoying the sun with her husband and three kids, not to mention working at a job so very close to her heart.

Claire van Ryn

Communications Specialist

Claire is an awarded writer who worked as a journalist and columnist for Fairfax media newspaper, The Examiner, before she became a mother. Together with her husband and two children, she lives in Launceston, Tasmania, where she juggles work, blog and play from the comfort and mayhem of home.
Claire’s particular love is in being able to write a person’s story; to listen as they unravel the tangled beauty of life. She has always had a soft place in her heart for unborn babies and their mums, and is motivated by love to speak truth in the hope that babies are valued before they are seen, and motherhood is considered the ultimate privilege.
She is responsible for web and social media copy, and anything else that crops up along the way.

Katrina Hobbs

Board Chair

Katrina is the Chief Executive Officer of the Eden Farms family group of companies. She has a Bachelor of Business degree and diplomas in export marketing and corporate governance. She is also a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. Katrina serves on the boards of Country Heritage Feeds, Australian Year of the Farmer and the Biological Farmers of Australia. Katrina was the University of Southern Queensland (USQ) 2012 Young Alumnus of the Year, recognising the career achievements and community contributions of past graduates. She is married and has five children.

Mark Freeman

Director, Company Secretary

Mark Freeman is a Certified Practicing Accountant who serves as the Business Manager of Fairholme College, Toowoomba.
Mark worked an an accountant at Schwarzkopf before overseeing the establishment of Integrity Music Australasia in the early 1990s and serving as the organisation’s CEO until 1997. Mark has also served long terms in executive roles with Toowoomba City Church and Toowoomba Christian College. He serves on several boards and is married with four children.

David Goodwin

Director

David a director of Interport Cargo Services Pty Ltd, a 50-year-old company located at Port of Brisbane that provides port service operations and includes customs warehousing and quarantine facilities. David has a Bachelor of Commerce majoring in accounting and finance, and is a qualified member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants. He is married and has seven children. David previously served as president of the Queensland Chamber of Commerce and Industry and a director of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and of the International Chamber of Commerce (Australia).